One Pan Cacio e Pepe Risotto Orzo
Updated Nov 02, 2025, Published on Feb 11, 2023
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This One Pan Cacio e Pepe Risotto Orzo may be one of my favorite things I've ever made! This is not traditional Cacio e Pepe or traditional risotto.
In February 2022, I created an Orzo Recipe Series on TikTok where I created 8 new orzo recipes during the month of February. It was definitely a fan favorite! In honor of the 1 year anniversary of this series, I am creating a February Orzo Series Part 2!
Recipe Details
Traditionally, Cacio e Pepe is a simple pasta dish with just black pepper and Pecorino Romano. I prefer parmesan cheese so I used that instead, but feel free to use whichever cheese you prefer or a combination of both. I also added some shallots and garlic to amp up the flavor. White wine and chicken broth give this dish the typical flavors and creamy consistency of risotto. Finally, I folded in some mascarpone cheese right at the end to make this orzo dish EXTRA creamy and crave-worthy! Risotto is traditionally made with rice rather than pasta. I used orzo which is rice-shaped pasta in this version.
This One Pan Cacio e Pepe Risotto Orzo is the fourth recipe in my new series. I can't emphasize enough how much I enjoyed this dish. I hope you love it too!
Did you try this One Pan Cacio e Pepe Risotto Orzo? Leave a review!
If you give this One Pan Cacio e Pepe Risotto Orzo recipe a try, feel free to rate/leave a review! You can also tag me on Instagram or TikTok!
Looking for more Cacio e Pepe flavors? Try my Lemon Cacio e Pepe recipe which puts a zesty spin on the classic dish!
Make sure to check out some other recipes from my February Orzo Series Part 2!
One Pan Cacio e Pepe Risotto Orzo
Equipment
- Pan I used my Our Place Always Pan for this dish
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon Butter
- 2 teaspoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Shallot, diced
- 4 cloves Garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon Black Pepper, coarsely ground, adjust to taste; additional to serve
- 1 cup Orzo Pasta, uncooked
- 1/4 cup White Wine, dry such as Sauvignon Blanc
- 3 to 4 cups Chicken Broth, chicken broth or stock of choice - use good quality, adjust as needed to cook orzo
- Kosher Salt, to taste
- 1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese, very finely grated on the smallest holes of a box grater; additional to serve
- 1/4 cup Mascarpone Cheese
- Graza "Drizzle" Finishing Oil, optional; but highly recommended to serve
Instructions
- In a large pan, melt the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced shallot and minced garlic. Cook for for 2 minutes, stirring often.
- Add a generous amount of coarsely ground black pepper. Stir to combine and let the pepper toast for 30 seconds. Add the uncooked orzo, stir to combine, and toast for another minute.
- Pour in the white wine. Stir to combine and cook for about 2 minutes until the wine is absorbed.
- Pour in good-quality chicken stock about a 1/2 cup at a time. Stir often so the orzo doesn't stick. Once most of the stock is absorbed, add another 1/2 cup of chicken stock. Continue this process until the orzo is cooked through. I added a pinch of kosher salt because I used very low sodium stock. This took me about 15 minutes. The orzo should look creamy and still have some liquid left when finished.
- Turn the heat to low. Add a few more cracks of black pepper then add the finely grated parmesan cheese and mascarpone cheese. Stir until well combined and all of the cheese is melted. Taste and add another pinch of salt as desired.
- Serve immediately with additional black pepper, parmesan cheese, and a drizzle of finishing olive oil.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
